Eb Difficultconversations TN 251620

Elementary Business
Difficult Conversations
Possible solutions to bad ideas:
Level: Elementary (A2) 1. Getting and giving bad news is just part of
professional life, so it cannot be avoided.
Time: Approximately 120 minutes 3. You need to (…) support your decision and (…)
explain the bad news to the other person.
Business topics: Difficult conversations 5. It’s important to deliver bad news quickly.
at work. 7. Avoid starting the conversation with a
ten-minute general chat.
Business language: useful business
vocabulary, collocations, gerunds and
Extension: Ask students to list dos and don’ts using
infinitives, giving opinions and justifying points
the tips in the article and add their ideas.
of view, writing a list of dos and don’ts
Example:
DOs
1. Warmer
Prepare what you are going to say.
a. Ask students to discuss the questions in pairs. Choose a suitable time and place to have the
Encourage them to think of as many examples of conversation.
difficult conversations as possible and the problems Get to the point.
that may come up from adopting the wrong approach Be sympathetic / show empathy.
when delivering bad news. Get students to think Give the other person your full attention.
about the skills required to handle these situations
effectively, for example, communicating clearly, being DON’Ts
assertive, showing empathy, etc. Allow each pair to Make jokes.
share ideas and discuss each question with the class. Be rude.
Give your personal opinion on the matter unless you
2. Reading comprehension are asked.
Give the other person false hope.
a. Give students time to read the text and work Include irrelevant details.
individually to choose the title that matches each
paragraph. Once they have decided, ask them to 3. Vocabulary practice
check their answers in pairs before checking with the
whole class. a. Write the word ‘collocation’ on the board and elicit its
meaning. Explain that a collocation is a set of words
Key: that usually go together. You may want to elicit other
1. Prepare yourself examples of business collocations before moving on
2. Prepare the other person to activity A. Once students have grasped the concept
3. Choose a time and place and seen some examples, ask them to work in pairs
4. Be direct and factual and match words from columns A and B to form
collocations that appear in the article.
b. Ask students to read the text again, this time to
decide which statements are good ideas, according to Key:
the text. 1. lose (your) job
Teacher’s notes
2. meet (a)deadline
Key: 3. make a mistake/promises
The tips offered in the article are those in statements 4. get information
2, 4, 6, 8, 9 and 10. 5. start a conversation
6. deliver (bad) news
Ask students to justify their answers by finding 7. turn off (your) phone
relevant evidence in the text and use this to correct 8. get to the point
the wrong sentences, so they reflect the tips given by 9. make promises/a mistake
the article. You may also ask students whether they
agree with the recommendations and why.
D •
TE E E
SI AD L
EB LO B
W N IA
Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2023. 1

M W P
O DO O
FR BE OC
T
O
H
AN
•P
C
Elementary Business
Difficult Conversations
a. Ask students to complete Activity 3b in pairs using the Key:
collocations they formed in 3a. Check answers with 1. bad practice
the whole group. 2. bad practice
3. good practice
Key: 4. good practice
1. lose / job 5. bad practice
2. meet / deadline 6. bad practice
3. make / mistake 7. good practice
4. get to the point 8. bad practice
5. deliver / news
6. make promises Once students have finished, ask them to share their
7. turn off /phones opinions, justify their answers and brainstorm ideas on
what they would do or say instead.
4. Grammar practice
b. Tell students they are going to work in pairs again. Ask
a. Ask students to read the sentences and, in pairs, them to tell their partners about a difficult conversation
choose the correct options. Once they have decided, at work, explaining what happened and how they
check answers with the whole class. delivered (or were delivered) the news. If students do
not have any experience of their own to share, ask
Key: them to share details of a conversation a colleague or
1. to avoid friend has gone through.
2. to be
3. starting
4. to get
5. to express
Some verbs followed by infinitives: be (+adjective),

remember, allow, learn, agree, like, hate, want, need
Some verbs followed by gerunds: avoid, consider,

dislike, enjoy, finish, keep, stop
b. Divide the class into pairs or groups of three. Ask

students to think of as many tips as possible using the
prompts given. Monitor the activity and offer feedback
and guidance as appropriate. Make sure students
focus both on content and the use of gerunds/
infinitives as required depending on the verbs given.
After a few minutes, ask groups to share their ideas

and justify their suggestions.
5. Communicative practice
Teacher’s notes
a. Ask students to work in pairs and read the comments

made by different managers when having difficult
conversations at work. You may want to discuss the
first one with the whole group to ensure everyone
understands what to do. Remind students to be ready
to justify their views.
D •
TE E E
SI AD L
EB LO B
W N IA
Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2023. 2

M W P
O DO O
FR BE OC
T
O
H
AN
•P
C

Eb Difficultconversations TN 251620

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Eb Difficultconversations TN 251620

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Eb Difficultconversations TN 251620

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Elementary Business

Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2023. 1

Some verbs followed by infinitives: be (+adjective),

Some verbs followed by gerunds: avoid, consider,

b. Divide the class into pairs or groups of three. Ask

After a few minutes, ask groups to share their ideas

a. Ask students to work in pairs and read the comments

Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2023. 2

You might also like